What book(s) are you reading right now?

[Winternet]

Recently I've tapped into a suppressed and dormant interest in books that has always been there with me, but was unachievable due to my ADHD. Now that I've gotten on a medication that works for me, I can actually read! And I love to read. 

So far I've read through 4/5 (or 4/6 depending on categorization) of the Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy novels. Before I could even read without physical pain, I collected Barnes & Noble collector editions of books because of how beautiful they are, and now I can finally read them. For me though, I prefer reading my books on an e-ink device I have and consider an accessibility tool. Also makes it easy to take notes or write comments on the books I'm reading!

So what books are you reading right now? What do you think of them so far?

[caracalled]

First, before anything: It makes me so happy to see that you have found accessibility options for yourself!! And that it makes this hobby possible for you!! Genuinely such a heartwarming thing to read about :D

I used to read a lot as a kid and kind of gave up on it later, but now I'm getting back into it as a way to spend time alone and as a way to get dedicated not-online time where I really am just doing one thing at a time. I usually divide it up into reading two books at once, one "easy read" (typically period pieces, like Jane Austen and a LOT of old detective novels) and one "hard read", typically some philosophy book, so I have the option to still read when I'm tired and can't concentrate on something difficult.

My easy read right now is actually nothing! I just finished A Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie and I'll probably continue with The Inugami Curse by Seishi Yokomizo. I love the Detective Kosuke Kindaichi series so far, absolutely delightful!! It's all so charming and silly in a way, and I love the moment when everything unravels at the end! I plan to (re)read the series, including the untranslated books once I get good enough at Japanese.

My hard read right now is Mythologies by Roland Barthes. I really like it so far, I read "The Death of the Author" by Barthes and "Who is the Author" by Foucault before this and (especially after Foucault) I really appreciate Barthes' writing style, it comes to me a bit more easily. The topic is also incredibly interesting to me specifically as I study digital design and I plan to write my thesis on ritual in the interaction with technology/the internet.

Other than that I can absolutely recommend looking into essays, articles and other longreads if you haven't already! I read one on the relationship people have with reading and how the school system is, in a sense, traumatizing people into not liking reading which I liked, and now I'm tackling the first issue of Interface Critique.

I read on an e-ink device too! It's just very convenient and it offers a bunch of tools for language learning that make reading in my target languages a lot more convenient! I'd be curious to hear which one you use and what you like about it!

[Eunice]

I've just this morning finished "The Odd Flamingo" by Nina Bawden. It was her first novel, a crime mystery. Though she was better known for her children's books. It's a cracking, intense novel. By the way, I keep a record of all the books I read in a year. And this year, so far, I've read 121 books!

[batsunsetz]

in terms of regular novels i guess id count it as dune frank herbert- im like 150 pages in though i havent worked on it since... last year, i think? in terms of comics im keeping up with the ongoing moon knight fist of khonshu 2024 (jed mackay and alessandro cappuccios... third mk solo run), i just finished hawkeye 2012 (matt fraction, david aja), and im in the middle of scud the disposable assassin by rob schrab. also just read deadpool 2023 (alyssa wong, martin coccolo)

i like comic books a normal amount

[fawn]

Congratulations on finding a medication that works for you and returning to the world of reading!!

I am currently reading Night Film by Marisha Pessl! It's a murder mystery (though that is kind of watering it down) and has mixed media which is right up my alley! She's a beefy one, 600+ pages, and I'm going through a rough time right now so I've picked up the audiobook alongside it which usually helps me when I'm reading something physically because then it has my full focus and makes things easier to process. I'm enjoying it, despite the main character being a little insufferable at times (though I think that's the point). I'm excited for any twists and turns, and for it all to piece together in the end.

For my bookclub this month I have read A Dark and Starless Forest by Sarah Hollowell (I only gave this a 2.5/5 rating, but I think it would be great for the right audience - it has wonderful diversity and rep!), Loud by Drew Afualo (3/5), and Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia by Sabrina Strings (4/5).

I usually don't read this quickly and I rarely actually manage to participate in my bookclub, but with the real life things happening lately, it's been a wonderful and welcome reprieve.

[windit]

This is a cute thread! Always interested to hear about other peoples' relationships to reading. I've been on a reading buzz recently but can get really sucked in, almost like binge-watching a TV show I'll spend a whole day reading when I have other things to do.

ANYWAY I have just started reading 'The Unconsoled' - (1995) by Kazuo Ishiguro. It's a very surrealist, wild ride so far. Almost kind of stressful to read.

I also just finished 'Orbital' (2023) by Samantha Harvey and really recommend it if you're into *~ Space ~*. Lots of in depth descriptions of the International Space Station, and of watching the Earth rotate, one continent / ocean emerging over the horizon at a time.

[nvalk1]

I'm currently reading "Hell is a Very Small Place", which is a series of essays by people who have suffered through solitary confinement. It's absolutely jarring to hear these stories of pain, but I relate to them in a lot of ways even though I haven't been placed in solitary confinement for as long as the people in these stories. I have been wrongfully arrested and placed in solitary confinement, but thankfully only for a short few days. Reading about the harshness of the American prison system is something that, while sobering, is still important for me so that I can better try to stand in solidarity with oppressed people and be on the right side of history.

I also started reading Fredrik Backman's "Anxious People" and I really dig his writing style. Backman wrote the book that inspired the famous Tom Hanks movie "A Man Called Otto". But yeah, I also read some posts on Backman's blog and I just really like the guy. There's still great books being written, people!!

[Winternet]

I read on an e-ink device too! It's just very convenient and it offers a bunch of tools for language learning that make reading in my target languages a lot more convenient! I'd be curious to hear which one you use and what you like about it!

I didn't even see any notifications for this post, so sorry for the delayed response!

I use the Supernote A5. I actually have OCD and tactile sensory issues, so, as illogical as it is, paper can be a huge trigger for me! But I love to draw and take notes so when I discovered this device it was an immediate buy. I absolutely love being able to read on a way bigger screen that doesn't produce light, because it's so easy for me to get headaches reading on a bright phone or computer screen. I love all the organization options it has, its size, and the developer involvement! They take suggestions via their subreddit and Trello, and have a transparent roadmap you can view at any time. All around a great experience!

[Winternet]

I've just this morning finished "The Odd Flamingo" by Nina Bawden. It was her first novel, a crime mystery. Though she was better known for her children's books. It's a cracking, intense novel. By the way, I keep a record of all the books I read in a year. And this year, so far, I've read 121 books!

Wow! That is a lot of books! I envy you haha. I'm hoping to read a few more by the end of this year, and then I'm excited to start next year reading from the very start and seeing how many books I can finish! I use an app called Storygraph to keep track of the books I've read so far!

[Winternet]

This is a cute thread! Always interested to hear about other peoples' relationships to reading. I've been on a reading buzz recently but can get really sucked in, almost like binge-watching a TV show I'll spend a whole day reading when I have other things to do.

ANYWAY I have just started reading 'The Unconsoled' - (1995) by Kazuo Ishiguro. It's a very surrealist, wild ride so far. Almost kind of stressful to read.

I also just finished 'Orbital' (2023) by Samantha Harvey and really recommend it if you're into *~ Space ~*. Lots of in depth descriptions of the International Space Station, and of watching the Earth rotate, one continent / ocean emerging over the horizon at a time.

Wow all those books sound really interesting, they're going on my to-read list! Especially interested in the space one! I got sucked into finishing half my book the other day, just kind of "bed-rotting" and reading all day :p

I used to not understand how people could spend so much time reading, as much as TV, but I knew I was missing something. I figured it had to do with my disabilities, but didn't realize how much I'd enjoy reading just as much as television/games. :D

[Winternet]

I'm currently reading "Hell is a Very Small Place", which is a series of essays by people who have suffered through solitary confinement. It's absolutely jarring to hear these stories of pain, but I relate to them in a lot of ways even though I haven't been placed in solitary confinement for as long as the people in these stories. I have been wrongfully arrested and placed in solitary confinement, but thankfully only for a short few days. Reading about the harshness of the American prison system is something that, while sobering, is still important for me so that I can better try to stand in solidarity with oppressed people and be on the right side of history.

I also started reading Fredrik Backman's "Anxious People" and I really dig his writing style. Backman wrote the book that inspired the famous Tom Hanks movie "A Man Called Otto". But yeah, I also read some posts on Backman's blog and I just really like the guy. There's still great books being written, people!!

Oh wow, being in solitary (and especially wrongfully so) must have been so scary, I'm sorry you went through that! I've been through quite a bit myself so I wonder how relatable I'd find that read -- it's definitely another one for my book list!

I've never seen that movie, but I'll have to check out the book and then watch it!

[WaybackGuy]

Lafayette by Harlow Giles Unger
Zachary Taylor: Soldier, Planter, Statesman of the Old Southwest by K. Jack Bauer
Uncentering the Earth: Copernicus and The Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres by William T. Vollmann

Taylor is part of a greater reading project, reading a biography of every US president.
My prior reading projects completed are Larry McCaffery's 100 English-Language Books of Fiction and the Modern Library's 100 Greatest English Language Novels.

McCaffery's list was a hell of a ride... that's where I really discovered a broad range of innovative fiction, and threads to other writers and works that have blown me away and I likely would not have found otherwise.